Greif (NYSE:GEF) Sets New 12-Month Low – Here’s Why

Greif, Inc. (NYSE:GEF)’s share price reached a new 52-week low during trading on Thursday . The stock traded as low as $53.10 and last traded at $53.65, with a volume of 24658 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $55.71.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently weighed in on GEF. Bank of America dropped their price target on Greif from $79.00 to $73.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 6th. Robert W. Baird reduced their target price on shares of Greif from $75.00 to $68.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 28th. Truist Financial restated a “hold” rating and issued a $65.00 price target (down from $71.00) on shares of Greif in a research note on Monday, March 3rd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on shares of Greif from $76.00 to $75.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, March 3rd. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $77.00.

Greif Stock Down 3.1 %

The company has a market cap of $2.46 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.48, a PEG ratio of 1.02 and a beta of 0.91. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $58.09 and a 200 day moving average of $62.02. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26, a current ratio of 1.53 and a quick ratio of 1.13.

Greif (NYSE:GEF) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 26th. The industrial products company reported $0.39 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.72 by ($0.33). The firm had revenue of $1.27 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.26 billion. Greif had a net margin of 4.81% and a return on equity of 11.84%. Research analysts anticipate that Greif, Inc. will post 4.11 earnings per share for the current year.

Greif Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 17th were issued a $0.54 dividend. This represents a $2.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.16%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 17th. Greif’s dividend payout ratio is presently 61.71%.

Insider Transactions at Greif

In related news, VP David C. Lloyd sold 2,263 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.24, for a total transaction of $125,008.12. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 7,580 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $418,719.20. This trade represents a 22.99 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Frank Calhoun V. Miller bought 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 11th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $58.50 per share, with a total value of $58,500.00. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 1,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $58,500. This represents a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 7.60% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Greif

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Stifel Financial Corp boosted its position in Greif by 97.0% during the 3rd quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 34,045 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $2,133,000 after buying an additional 16,759 shares during the period. Moran Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Greif during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $2,594,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in Greif by 8.4% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 568,725 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $34,760,000 after purchasing an additional 44,088 shares during the last quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Greif by 2.1% in the 4th quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC now owns 535,932 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $32,756,000 after purchasing an additional 11,210 shares during the period. Finally, Zacks Investment Management bought a new stake in Greif during the third quarter valued at $610,000. 45.74% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Greif

Greif, Inc engages in the production and sale of industrial packaging products and services worldwide. The company operates through Global Industrial Packaging; Paper Packaging & Services; and Land Management segments. The Global Industrial Packaging segment produces and sells industrial packaging products, including steel, fiber, and plastic drums; rigid and flexible intermediate bulk containers; closure systems for industrial packaging products; transit protection products; water bottles, and remanufactured and reconditioned industrial containers; and various services, such as container life cycle management, filling, logistics, warehousing, and other packaging services to chemicals, paints and pigments, food and beverage, petroleum, industrial coatings, agriculture, pharmaceuticals, mineral product, and other industries.